S&W 640 or 642

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I have been wanting to grab a 642 (or 442) for a while now. I'll probably be able to do this next week.
Anyways, I know the main difference between the 640 and 642 is the material: stainless or aluminum.
But I was wondering if anyone had noticed a difference if one has a better trigger than the other.


I know I won't be using it for bulls-eye, and I plan on snapcapping it til it's smooth, but are they internally the same?
 
I've shot my son's 640 but it had a trigger job and shot nicer than my 642. With an out of the box trigger I think the 640 would still shoot easier because of it's heavier weight. However, for pocket carry or "Smart Carry" there is no doubt that I'd pick the 642. Belt carry I'd pick the 640.
 
I've owned both and if you can deal with the weight get the 640, put a set of boot grips on it and stoke it with the Speer Short Barrel .357 mag load. The 640 I had was super accurate with that ammunition, if I pulled the trigger right. Full power loads will part your hair in terms of the muzzle blast... hurt a little with the boot grips but fully managable with the full size grips it comes with. The short barrel load is great for carry though... most of the velocity, still better than .38 +P, with only about 75% of the massive concussion of full power .357 mag loads. [grin]

As far as snapcapping it goes, you can skip all that and bring it to Greg Derr or another competent revolver smith and have the internals smoothed out. It's nicer on your hand than dryfiring it a million times. Mine was pretty decent out of the box so I never bothered to do it.

The SW640 is one of the guns that I've sold that I wish I really hadn't. One of these days I will own another.

-Mike
 
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They are the same internally. The 640 will have significantly less felt recoil, due to the extra weight. I find my 642 to be quite unpleasant to shoot, while my model 60, on the other hand, is fine.

While dry-firing will help somewhat, they really will need a trigger job.
 
I wanted a 642 from the start.

I asked the guy behind the counter if I could try fire several of them; then picked the one which I felt had the best trigger.

You can get a sweet trigger or a lemon - just try them out.
 
One more thing I forgot to mention. You can get the 642 without the internal lock or with it if you so desire.
 
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I plan on buying the 442 or 642 as I'd like to have the ability to pocket carry as well as belt carry if I want to. For some reason, I was thinking that the all steel version might possibly have smoother/different internals.

Maybe after I get all the guns on "the list" (mine, not the states) I may go ahead and pick up a 640 but it's not really on the horizon.
 
Another thing to consider is barrel length. The 640 barrel is .25" longer than the 642. Could make a difference in a shallow pocket, but may help a little in the accuracy department.

Bill
 
To me, portability is most important WRT these guns. Both guns are accurate and reliable enough for the distances that they are gonna be needed.

I picked a poor title for the thread.
 
One more thing I forgot to mention. You can get the 642 without the internal lock or with it if you so desire.

Is it possible to tell if it has an internal lock by anything on the outside of the gun or would only a gunsmith be able to tell? I understand what the internal lock is and that I do not want it, I just wanted to know how to tell if I were to buy a used one in a FTF transaction.
TIA
 
Is it possible to tell if it has an internal lock by anything on the outside of the gun or would only a gunsmith be able to tell? I understand what the internal lock is and that I do not want it, I just wanted to know how to tell if I were to buy a used one in a FTF transaction.
TIA

The guns that have a lock will have a small round hole located just above the cylinder thumb release. You can't miss it.
 
To me, portability is most important WRT these guns. Both guns are accurate and reliable enough for the distances that they are gonna be needed.

I picked a poor title for the thread.


I sold my 640 and bought a 642. The difference in weight was the determining factor. I could always 'feel' the 640 on my person. I completely forget I'm carrying the 642. It pays to get some trigger work done on either one. It's one stiff trigger, for such a small gun.


Bill
 
For pocket carry I wouild pick the alloy framed S&W 642. I have an older S&W Model 60 but it is much too heavyh for pocket carry in my opinion.
 
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